Softball: Wisconsin falls to Oregon in NCAA tournament

Badgers managed to hand Mizzou loss during their time in College World Series

The University of Wisconsin softball team ended their NCAA women’s College World Series run Sunday, falling to Oregon for the second time that weekend.

The Badgers (35-17, 11-11 Big Ten) started off their tournament run with a bang, taking down the University of Missouri (29-28, 7-16 SEC) Friday night with a 7-2 victory. This win allowed Wisconsin to continue on in the tournament and face the University of Oregon (50-6, 17-6 PAC-12) the following Saturday.

Saturday’s game was a nail-biter between the Big Ten and the Pac-12, with Wisconsin challenging Oregon every step of the way. The Badgers managed to take the lead early on in the series, with a 5-2 edge over the Ducks heading into the sixth period.

The Ducks managed to come back with four runs in the final three innings, and the Badgers would win up falling 5-6. Since the World Series is a double-elimination tournament, the Badgers still had a shot at moving on in the tournament, as long as they managed to beat the University of Illinois-Chicago (39-22, 20-4 Horizon).

Wisconsin had a short turn-around, with less than two hours between the two games Saturday. UIC had previously lost to Oregon Friday, and they were still fighting for their place in the tournament.

With a 2-0 victory for the Badgers, Sunday’s game was scheduled, with a rematch between Oregon and Wisconsin taking place at 6 p.m. Wisconsin was hoping to find redemption in their second meeting with the Ducks, but the only thing they would find was disappointment.

Oregon is a team that is known for creating tremendous scoring opportunities, and once they get a scoring streak started, it is hard to stop them. The Badgers managed to hold the Ducks back Saturday, but they did not have the same luck Sunday.

The Ducks started a scoring run early on in the first period, managing to take four runs from the Badgers. Oregon would continue this momentum in the fourth, when they would manage to garner another five runs in the period.

The Badgers struggled to keep up, with inning after inning resulting in a scoreless scoreboard for UW. After the Ducks managed to score their ninth run in total, and the Badgers failed to score in the top of the fifth period, the game was called in Oregon’s favor.

The Badgers might not have gotten the ending that they wanted, but they still managed to create some waves during their short appearance at the College World Series. If this year is indicative of anything, it is that Wisconsin is showing early signs of becoming a national powerhouse.